Embracing Minimalism: Moving

I’ve been looking at apartments off and on since 2013. We even almost bought a house then, which is a story for another time. It is safe to say I’ve never truly enjoyed this apartment. Two bedrooms, one bath, 700 square feet; the place has severe moisture issues, shared laundry and poor natural light. It is a design nightmare, as well as a blogger’s nightmare.

April 2, 2015 I found a, 600 square foot, one bedroom apartment on Criagslist in our area that had in-unit laundry and allowed Leo at no extra cost. Rent is cheaper, too. I called the number for it at 8:40pm, apologizing for calling so late, and scheduled a walk-through the next morning. The apartment was unclean and disgusting, but I instantly fell in love. I told Trevor about the place, he approved, I signed a check and leased the place. Final walk-through and possession is on the 15th, we begin moving that day, we’ll move the bulk of our stuff on the 18th, and we have to have our current place cleared/cleaned by May 1st.

Here are some photos of our new place, as I saw it. Stains, hair, dirt, crumbs and all:

When I told my friend, Cassie, that Trevor and I were moving days before her baby shower (for her first child) her response was very quick. “Really? When and do you need help?” I was blown away and ignored the subject, as I felt I could never EVER ask her and Adam, her husband, to help us move one day before one of the biggest events in their lives to-date. After letting me describe the place, she offered again. I said we’d pay them in pizza.

Trevor’s brother also offered to help us out if we needed it. Our sister-in-law offered storage for items we’d like to sell at her place in May. Again, without skipping a beat.

I’ve been blown away by the support and unconditional kindness we’ve received, especially because this whole ordeal has happened on such short notice. This has been the inspiration I needed to pack up and prep everything we have. It has also been the inspiration we needed to re-visit all our belongings.

Every item we intend to keep is in its rightful place. Every item we intend to discard is where it belongs as well. It feels so great to finally be in this place, but I know the process won’t ever end. I believe once we’ve moved, we’ll continue to be conscious of every item we own and how often we use it. We’ll be aware of the value it adds to our lives, or doesn’t add. I hope we can continue to downsize into a life of full-size happiness.

I want to clarify here: we will not be taking any time off during this move. Our regular schedule of posts on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday will continue. Please stay tuned for more fun posts on minimizing, living with less and more. If you’ve ever moved, please share your tips and tricks below!